First Solar: Recovering Minerals & Metals from Solar Waste

While solar panels are a key part of the energy transition, they come with challenges.

Solar panels typically last about 30 years, suggesting that most solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity installed by 2025 will expire by 2055.

In 2021, the worldwide reuse rate for PV panels is about 14%, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The remaining 86% would typically go to landfill, creating the problem of recycling and wasting valuable minerals and metals.

Sonia Dunlop, CEO at the Global Solar Council, says: “Achieving the global target of tripling renewable energy capacity by the end of the decade is possible with solar, we need 1 TW of solar every year through 2030 and solar progress in more and more countries.

“That means action now to prepare for the future: smarter grids, faster permitting, bigger investments in emerging markets and serious workforce planning.”

Why solar panels become waste

Solar panels degrade due to sunlight exposure, weather and temperature changes.

The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory reports that panels generally lose up to 0.8% efficiency yearly.

After about 30 years, replacing solar panels becomes more cost-effective due to decreased energy output, especially with ongoing improvements in efficiency and size.

In 2000, the average conversion efficiency of panels exceeded 11%; by 2025, this efficiency is approximately 20%.

The problems with solar PV disposal

Projections by the IEA and International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) suggest solar PV waste could be 78 million tonnes by 2050, approximately 13 times the Great Pyramid of Giza's weight.

Discarded solar panels mean loss of valuable and potentially hazardous minerals and metals like:

• Silicon
• Silver
• Aluminium
• Copper
• Cadmium

Solar panels include materials commonly recycled, such as glass and aluminium, but panel recycling faces limitations due to economic challenges, inadequate infrastructure and weak policy enforcement, as per the IEA.

IEA and IRENA predict that by 2030, only 22-49% of solar panels will be recycled globally, subject to policy and economic changes.

The same research indicates the technical potential value of materials from expired PV panels could surpass US$15bn.

According to IEA analysis, recycling can satisfy significant demand for materials like silver, silicon, copper, and glass from 2040 to 2050.

This potential presents a considerable opportunity if recycling is broadly embraced.

First Solar’s PV recycling

US solar panel manufacturer First Solar claims to be the only global solar manufacturer with extensive PV recycling capabilities and over 15 years of operational experience.

It inaugurated the first worldwide solar panel recycling programme in 2005 and has continually invested in enhancements.

First Solar’s 2024 Sustainability Report states the company reached 88,000 tonnes of annual recycling capacity by 2023's conclusion.

“As the Clean Energy Buyers Institute warned, if the solar manufacturing industry continues its business-as-usual approach by relying on cheap, subsidised coal electricity to produce polysilicon, it runs the risk of overtaking aluminium production in carbon intensity,” said Pat Buehler, Chief Product Officer at First Solar, on the report’s release. 

“We must act now to change course by actively reducing the carbon footprint of solar technologies while also investing in high-value recycling that addresses the end-of-life management of decommissioned solar panels in a sustainable manner. 

“Our industry must embody sustainability, not simply pay lip service to it.”

How SOLARCYCLE recycles panels

California-based SOLARCYCLE specialises in advanced solar recycling and works with various companies, including ENGIE, CanadianSolar, and EDP Renewables.

The startup seeks to retrieve valuable materials like silicon, copper, silver, aluminium, and glass from expired solar panels and reintegrate them into the solar supply chain.

SOLARCYCLE’s proprietary technology can salvage over 95% of valuable materials in solar panels.

It is testing a new “precycling” programme with ENGIE North America to redirect 48 million pounds of material from landfill.

“ENGIE’s precycling provision sets a new precedent for the utility-scale solar industry by proving that circular economy principles can be achieved without complex regulatory intervention and in a way that doesn’t require an up-front payment,” says Jesse Simons, Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer at SOLARCYCLE.

“We’re happy to work creatively with leaders like ENGIE to support their commitment to circularity, domestic energy and sustainability.”